(Clearwisdom.net) On the afternoon of February 11, 2004, California Falun Gong practitioners gathered in front of the French Consulate and appealed to the French government to investigate the incident in which Falun Gong practitioners were arrested in Paris during the Chinese president's visiting and hold those persons responsible.
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| Falun Gong practitioner enters French Consulate to deliver appeal letter | Appeal in front of French Consulate |
In the letter to the French Consulate, the practitioners said that during Chinese President Hu's visit to France, several dozen Falun Gong practitioners were arrested in Paris for wearing yellow shirts or scarves on which the words of "Falun Dafa" and "Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance" were printed. The practitioners who were arrested include citizens of the USA, Hong Kong, Netherlands, Taiwan and France.
Two US citizens, Dr. Sunny Lu and Dr. Viviana Galli were also arrested. On January 24, more than a dozen police took them away from a crowded street. The police told the practitioners later that the reason for their arrest was that they wore apparel on which the words "Falun Dafa" and "Truthfulness, Compassion, Tolerance" were printed.
We learned that all of the arrests were without just cause, and all practitioners arrested were not released until the end of the Paris events that day, which was held in collaboration with the Chinese Government. Some police officers refused to give their names and police number.
In the letter, it was pointed out that during the last few years Jiang and his followers have exported the persecution overseas. For example, in April 2004, when Jiang Zemin visited Germany, the police harassed Falun Gong practitioners under the pressure from Jiang's regime. The German Government made a public apology later.
In the letter, it was said that Freedom, Equality, and Fellowship are French founding values. Falun Gong in France is a legal organization. The French government supports the human rights of the Chinese people. However, those who ordered the police to arrest Falun Gong practitioners harmed the image of France. We request French Government to investigate the incident and safeguard freedom and basic human rights.
In the afternoon, Ms. Xuerong Zhang, representing the Falun Gong practitioners, delivered the letter to Deputy Consul Yo-Jung Chen. Ms. Zhang said, "We did not come here to protest against the French Government. We are representing Western US Falun Gong practitioners and wish to express our concern about the Paris incident, the human rights of those Falun Gong practitioners who were illegally arrested in Paris, and request the French Government to investigate and punish those persons responsible for the incident."
Deputy Consul Chen said after accepting the letter that he saw the peaceful appeal outside the Consulate. He said that the appeal did not harm anyone or cause inconvenience or obstruction. He promised that he would transfer the letter to the French Government and convey the practitioners' concern and request.
Ms. Zhang said during an interview, "France is the birthplace of democracy. The Statue of Liberty was a gift to the United States from France. Freedom, equality and fellowship are universal values that everyone should safeguard. These unwarranted arrests by Paris police violated the values that France promotes and infringed upon the legal rights of Falun Gong practitioners. Apparently, this happened because Jiang's group exported the persecution to France and tempted some French Government officials to betray France and the French people using economic incentives."
Ms. Zhang also said, "We cannot tolerate such human rights violations in a democratic country. Thus, we request the French Government to investigate this incident and charge those responsible."
Category: April 25 Events
